The Opportunity Green Business Conference 2011
Event Steering Committee


  • Irwin Miller

    Irwin Miller

    Principal
    Gensler
    Irwin Miller is a Principal and Director of the Retail Studio at the Gensler Los Angeles office. He also acts as a Retail Practice Area Leader for the firm. Noteworthy projects include MGM Mirage CityCenter Sales Office in Las Vegas, The Nomadic Museum in Santa Monica and Majestic Cruises flagship vessel based in Curacao. Irwin leads collaborative and dynamic teams that deal with the application of new technologies, media and user experience in retail environments. He holds bachelor of arts and bachelor of architecture degrees from the Rhode Island School... read more

  • Dan Burrier

    Dan Burrier

    Chief Innovation Officer
    Ogilvy
    Nine-year-old Dan listens as Ray Bradbury describes a short story, "The Veldt," at a reading, El Camino Community College, Los Angeles: "As the parents walk down the hall to the nursery," Bradbury says, "I don't know what's going to happen. I simply follow them and watch." Dan thinks this is somehow a calling to become a novelist; it turns out, in fact, to be an apt description of a career in advertising. (The parents are eaten by lions.) At 12, Dan plants a cardboard sign in the middle of his parents'... read more

  • Jason Carignan

    Jason Carignan

    Co-Founder and Chief Design Officer
    Vapur
    Jason Carignan, Co-Founder, Chief Design Officer Jason Carignan, Vapur Co-Founder and Chief Design Officer, has spent his career building customer experience and brand strategies for some of today’s leading companies. An experienced design and strategy thought-leader, Jason has led brand innovation projects for some of today's most recognized brands including Anthem Blue Cross, Four Seasons Hotels, Countrywide Bank, First Marblehead and Sprint. Prior to founding Vapur, Jason was the CEO of Tonic, Inc., a boutique brand consultancy that worked with a diverse range of clients in healthcare, hospitality, financial services and technology.... read more

  • Emilie Cowan

    Emilie Cowan

    Head of Business Development & Strategy
    We Are Plus
    Emilie Cowan is an innovative and analytical business development strategist with more than 12 years of expertise designing and deploying customized digital and offline offerings for clients in corporate and start-up sectors spanning various industries including health and wellness, eco/clean tech, fashion and consumer products. She is currently a NY affiliate for ecofabulous. Previous jobs include COO for ecofabulous and president at Opportunity Green.

  • Vikki Ernst

    Director of Integrated Marketing
    Oprah Winfrey Network

  • Samuel Garrison

    Samuel Garrison

    Director
    High Lantern Group
    Prior to his current position as Director at High Lantern Group, Garrison served as Vice President of Public Policy for the L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce, the region’s largest business advocacy organization. Garrison has deep experience working at the intersection of business strategy and public policy in the Los Angeles region. In five years at the Chamber, he successfully positioned the organization as a state leader in business advocacy, government reform, and civic collaboration. Previously, he worked on Capitol Hill as a personal aide to Sen. Dianne Feinstein... read more

  • Betsy Henning

    Betsy Henning

    Principal and co-founder
    AHA!
    Betsy Henning is principal and co-founder of marketing communications firm AHA! in Vancouver, Wash. She is an expert communications strategist with a focus in building strong businesses through excellent brand experiences. Betsy consults with clients from high-tech giants to startups on strategic communication, integrated messaging, and brand voice, tone and manner. For more than a dozen years, Betsy has worked with Hewlett-Packard, Charles Schwab, Yahoo!, NBC Universal, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Pop!Tech, an annual conference of visionaries, corporate leaders, entrepreneurs and educators who consider how science, technology and innovative ideas can generate positive change in the world. Betsy is... read more

  • Kristen Irving

    Kristen Irving

    Director of Campaign Development and Social Action
    Participant Media
    Kristen Irving is Director of Campaign Development, Social Action for Participant Media, where she is responsible for creating and implementing advocacy and multi-media programs for Participant’s feature and documentary films (recent Participant films include Food, Inc., Waiting For Superman and The Help). Prior to Participant, Kristen served as Director of Nonprofit Relations at Causecast.org, an online platform for nonprofit organizations, corporations and individuals where she was responsible for managing nearly 100 nonprofit clients and integrating tech and new media tools into their strategy and models. While at Causecast, Kristen created... read more

  • Andrea Robinson

    Andrea Robinson

    Founder and Director
    Arc Sustainability
    Andrea Robinson is the Founder and Director of ARC Sustainability, a Los Angeles based environmental and corporate social responsibility consulting firm. ARC Sustainability develops and manages corporate engagement, responsibility and educational programs, efficiency audits and environmental benchmark reporting, marketing and mass movement campaigns, and NGO partnerships. ARC Sustainability specializes in designing and implementing sustainability programs for conventions, corporations, live events, TV and film productions, concerts, hotels and residences. ARC Sustainability produces measurable results in energy efficiency, water conservation, waste diversion, transportation minimization, materials sourcing, and metrics for reducing and offsetting... read more

  • Liba Rubenstein

    Liba Rubenstein

    Executive Director Global Energy Initiative
    News Corp
    Liba Wenig Rubenstein runs News Corporation's Global Energy Initiative (GEI), the company-wide commitment to grow sustainably, to minimize the environmental impact of its operations – including over 100 businesses on 5 continents – and to inspire others to take action – including its one billion customers, fifty-thousand employees, and hundreds of business partners. Liba joined the News Corp. family in 2006 when she founded the IMPACT Channel for causes and politics on MySpace.com and managed its Public Affairs team, launching groundbreaking initiatives around climate change, Darfur, ‘viral' fundraising, and the... read more

  • Kathleen Strouse

    Kathleen Strouse

    Senior Director of Digital Business Support
    Universal Music Group
    As the Executive Director of Digital Business Support at Universal Music Group since 2006, Kathleen has managed to significantly reduce physical promo product by 89%, as well as saving on shipping and manufacturing materials by leading the trend towards digital music. Her leadership has both cut costs and reduce the music giant’s carbon footprint.

  • Mary Jo Viederman

    Mary Jo Viederman

    President
    Charter 21
    Mary Jo Viederman has over 15 years of experience in branding and strategic communications for leading brands with a focus on social responsibility. These brands include Stonyfield Farm, Lindblad Expeditions, Honest Tea, Odwalla and others. I also work with non-profit organizations, particularly in strategic partnerships on issues such as climate change, fair and child labor, childhood obesity, sustainable tourism and many others. 

She is currently the President of Charter 21, an integrated communications firm specializing CSR brand development and communications.

  • Nadine Weil

    Nadine Weil

    VP of Special Products
    EcoFabulous
    Nadine is the Vice-President of Special Projects for ecofabulous.com. She is also the founder of Heart of Green, which supports modern sustainability projects and causes including forests, wildlife conservation, clean technology, regenerative design, and environmental media. Previously, Nadine -founded Pathway Ventures, worked as a strategic advisor to the portfolio companies of Silicon Valley’s top venture capital firms, and served as the head of marketing for OpenTable.com. She has a B.S. in Engineering from Stanford University and an MBA from the Harvard Business School, where she won an award for her... read more

  • Margie Wheeler

    Margie Wheeler

    Executive Strategist
    Metropolitan Water District and Board member of the Southern California Leadership Network
    Margie J. Wheeler is an Executive Strategist for The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. She currently works within Metropolitan’s Bay-Delta Initiatives program focused on long-term strategic planning and manages one of Metropolitan’s strategic communications programs. Margie is currently pursuing a Doctor of Policy, Planning and Development at the University of Southern California. An employee of Metropolitan for nearly 18 years, she has held various positions in Water Planning, Public Affairs and the Executive Office, where she supported strategic initiatives and Metropolitan’s 37-member board of directors. . ... read more